His performance this spring has soothed concerns about Matt Belisle’s slump this spring and the interest in making a trade. A Rockies’ source said Sunday that the team is not looking to acquire a right-handed setup man, preferring to give Bettis or Chris Martin a chance before pursuing a deal.

Belisle has a 10.80 ERA and allowed 11 hits in five innings.

Manager Walt Weiss insists that he’s not concerned with Belisle’s struggles because he’s working on a changeup. However, Belisle regressed last year, and the team doesn’t have the luxury of pitching around guys with 40 games in the season’s first 42 days.

Bettis could be the answer. He has been dominant after spending the entire winter focusing on his transition to the bullpen. The role isn’t unfamiliar since he closed in college at Texas Tech. But learning when to get loose, how to get loose more quickly and mapping out innings required an adjustment.

Chad Bettis (Associated Press file)

“It’s funny you say that. I have thinking like that in these last few spring games. Seeing where they might need me and who I would face,” Bettis said.

Bettis told the Rockies at the end of last season he’d like to start, but wanted to do what was best for the team. They picked the bullpen and he’s been all in since, working on his changeup grip and four-seam fastball the entire winter.

It has played out in games. He has thrown five innings, striking out five. He hasn’t allowed a run. He’s only given up three hits. In a breathtaking performance on Friday night, he fanned a pair of Seattle Mariners with a 97-mph fastball, a devilish weapon when combined with an 89-mph changeup that he’s learned to locate.

“What advice do I have for him? Keep doing what he did that night,” said Rex Brothers, who was once the franchise’s top relief prospect. “That was good stuff.”

The Rockies have not decided how the bullpen will shake out. Part of it hinges on Franklin Morales. If he doesn’t make the rotation, he will end up in the bullpen, possibly squeezing out Bettis. As it stands the projected relief corps is LaTroy Hawkins, Brothers, Boone Logan, Belisle, Wilton Lopez, Adam Ottavino and Morales, Bettis or Martin.

The Rockies have made several roster moves the last few days. Top prospects Jon Gray and Eddie Butler were sent down to the minors. Both left an indelible impression in their month long stay. Weiss discussed what they need to work on in the minors in the video above.